A Facebook login page is seen on a computer screen in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Thursday, August 27, 2009. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Adrian Wyld)

(Newser)
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Another day, another Facebook privacy flap: Now the social networking giant is testing a feature that Mashable calls a "stalker button." It's actually a subscription feature, allowing you to subscribe to all the actions of any of your friends—meaning you will receive notifications any time that person does...basically anything. A rep tells AllFacebook that status updates and "new content" such as photos, videos, links, and notes would all prompt notifications for subscribers.

"It's the ultimate stalking tool!" writes Nick O'Neill on AllFacebook. Jolie O'Dell concurs: "We at Mashable are hoping this is an opt-in (or at least an opt-out) feature," she writes. The controls are convenient for some, but "they’re also potentially damaging if rolled out to jealous 'frenemies,' vindictive exes, or nosy bosses." Though the information is already public, this feature definitely makes stalking easier, writes Max Read on Gawker. "Surely, that's not the work of a company dedicated to privacy and user controls."

In Account| Privacy you'll find a list of Facebook elements and you're given a choice as to who may see them. If you choose "Custom" and select "Only Me" from the pulldown menu, problem solved. If Facebook is mining the users who aren't capable of figuring that out, sorry...I'm convinced they're not being responsible users. End of discussion.